The Philadelphia 76ers point guard beat out Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell and Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum for the prestigious honour. "That doesn't take anything away from Jayson or Donovan". The award was decided by members of the USA and Canadian sports media and Simmons likely benefited from the date votes had to be cast.

Germany are through if they match or better Sweden's result when they play South Korea. Then in the second half, Youssef En-Nesyri's towering header completely caught the Spanish defence out. Egypt's early exit always made it likely that Hector Cuper would grant El-Hadary his grand moment, though, as he did in handing him his World Cup debut as a r...

Prediction: Nigeria 1-1 Argentina! After the last match, I took responsibility for that defeat. The 67,000 -capacity Zenit Arena is located on a piece of land reclaimed from the sea, in the Krestovsky Ostrov (Krestovsky Island) district of Saint Petersburg.

Should Deschamps opt to rest several players, he could put Pogba and Blaise Matuidi on the bench after they were booked in the opening games. As far as betting is concerned, we are not getting a good enough price to wager on the French so the outright result is a market which I would avoid.

Tanguy is the most likely transfer since teammate Fekir just turned down Liverpool by signing a new contract and the chances of Depay returning are practically impossible. "I had an exchange with him the day after we chose to stop the negotiation with Liverpool. It did not happen because things were dragged out too long".

About a minute after Aspas' goal, Iran tied things up with Portugal , meaning that when the final whistles sounded, Spain had won group B, while Portugal had come in second. While the match did not mean much to the group, the two teams were battling for pride. He answered his critics in Portugal's clash with Spain , by scoring a stunnin...

The World Cup is nearly to the knockout stage, which begins on Saturday, and while some teams have already made it through to the round of 16, many are doing the maths to see how they can make it. "That's what we saw on the pitch". But despite the draws, both teams find themselves through to the knockouts. " Uruguay then started playing thei...

You're talking about Serena Williams . The seeding meeting is due to take place on 26 June. "Consequently, (the seeds) will reflect this week's world ranking". She said: "I think Wimbledon will make the right choice and I think they will seed her". In an interview with the Telegraph, McEnroe mentioned, 'Our ratings on NBC, the day she ...

Spain drew 2-2 with Morocco to top Group B thanks to a late Iago Aspas equaliser that was referred to the video assistant referee and Iran held Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal to a 1-1 draw. the "clear and obvious" error rule doesn't work cause you have to check so many to see if it is clear and that's questionable so 50/50s get over turned...

Sampaoli called a clear-the-air meeting with his squad after Nigeria's 2-0 victory over Iceland on Friday left Argentina needing to beat the Africans in St Petersburg on Tuesday. "Our defenders must be tired of Musa's threat, he is a good player and you remember he scored two goals against us the last time we met", Franco said.

In 2010, James bolted Cleveland in a nationally televised announcement "The Decision" infamously declaring he was taking his "talents to South Beach" and joining the Miami Heat . Windhorst wondered on "The Lowe Post" podcast if James might end up having to sacrifice some of his desires - team competitiveness or what makes his family happiest.

Many rejoiced in what they saw as a large slice of footballing karma for Ramos. La Roja had not accounted for Morocco's remarkable endeavour, though, as Herve Renard 's side looked to have snatched a shock victory when substitute Youssef En-Nesyri thumped a header home in the 81st minute.

Harden beat out LeBron James and Anthony Davis , who finished second and third in the voting. Harden becomes the third ever Rocket to claim the award following Moses Malone (1979 and 1982) and Hakeem Olajuwon (1994). Davis was also a finalist for Defensive Player of the Year - which was won by Utah Jazz forward Rudy Gobert - but the Pelica...

It is 10 years since an Argentina team boasting the burgeoning talents of Lionel Messi and Sergio Aguero, Angel Di María and Javier Mascherano beat Nigeria 1-0 in the 2008 Olympic final in Beijing. Argentina legend Diego Maradona has been left outraged by his Country's poor start to their World Cup campaign, and wants to meet with the A...

It's a sign of how much England have progressed under Gareth Southgate that they ruthlessly despatched a weak opponent, although Panama did have the consolation of scoring their first World Cup goal when 37-year-old Felipe Baloy netted late on.

After scoring their respective goals, Xhaka's a 52nd-minute banger from 30 yards and Shaqiri's a calm extra-time finish from inside the box after drawing Serb keeper Vladimi Stojkovic out, both men made a similar hand gesture as part of their goal celebration.

Federer skipped the clay-court campaign to concentrate on grass, and after consecutive tournaments on the lawns - he won the Stuttgart title last week - plans a light week of training and rest in London ahead of Wimbledon . Federer's preparations in the build-up to the defense of his Wimbledon title have been running smoothly, with a title last we...

When someone threatens me, when they call me darkie, bloody Arab, terrorist, Taliban ... then that limit has been passed. Durmaz, who was born in Sweden to Assyrian parents who had emigrated from Turkey, played down the abuse. The Swedes now need to recover and beat Mexico in their final group match in Ekaterinburg on Wednesday to be sure of adva...

What makes the Argentines interesting is the ways they are bad, the sheer variety of their mediocrity, so bad, in fact, that having the best player in the world, and possibly in history, Lionel Messi , hasn't mattered at all. "The relationship with the coach is totally normal", said Mascherano, who at 34, is one of the most experienced and influen...

How it affects Ricciardo remains to be seen, with the Australian out of contract at the end of the year and considering his options. As Mercedes and Ferrari appear an unlikely destination for the Australian, Horner believes re-signing with Red Bull - which will use Honda engines from next season - is his best choice.